Of Neville, his Pride and his Parents
by maya selene
Summary: neville's first DADA class with prof. moody. r/r please.


It was the Gryffindor's first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson with Professor Moody, and even though the bell hadn't gone yet, and lunchtime was still not over, the whole class had already queued up outside the classroom. The atmosphere was one of excitement and apprehension, and it made Neville Longbottom feel slightly uncomfortable.  
Unlike the rest of his classmates, he had not been looking forward to the Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson. He found Professor Moody frightning, his magical eye nerve-wracking, and his wooden leg and scarred appearence did not make Neville feel any more comfortable around him. He wished that they still had Professor Lupin with them. Even though Professor Lupin had been a werewolf, Neville had definitly felt more at ease around him.  
The bell went and everyone filed inside, unusually quiet. Neville took a seat behind Hermione, feeling that if the lesson was a disaster, he'd have, at least, a friendly face and ready mind to help him out.  
After a short while, the class could hear the unmistakable clunking of Moody's wooden legs coming down the corridor. Moody entered, looking his usual self and gave the class a frightening glare before sitting down behind his desk.  
"You can put those away," he growled, "those books. You won't need them."  
The class obediantly stowed their books back into bags and turned to face him, some looking excited, some nervous and others downright scared.  
Unfortunatly, while he had been putting away his books, Neville had somehow managed to spill ink all over his copy of 'The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self Protection'. This kept him occupied for a while, he was so busy mopping everthing up he barely took note of Moody taking attendence. However, his head did snap back suddenly when he heard Moody's voice say:  
"But you're behind-very behind-on dealing with curses."  
Neville jerked. Nobody knew that his own parents had been taken from him because of a curse. Nobody knew that, nobody in all his four years at Hogwarts had ever bothered to find out why Neville lived with his Grandmother, and that was how Neville liked it. He didn't want anyone's sympathy, and he knew that people would treat him differently if they knew the truth about what happened.  
Neville's parents had both been aurors and both had been totured for information about Voldmort's whereabouts after he had lost his powers. Now both of them were in St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.  
With a pang, Neville thought back to his last visit. His parents, like every time before, had not recognised him. Neville had talked to them, told them all about school, but they hadn't seemed interested ,they didn't seem to care. He could still picture them in his head.  
"I'm-I'm doing really well in Herbology," he had said on his last visit. "Professor Sprout said I'd be a really good Herbotanist. That's-that's someone who studies new forms of plant life."  
His parents had just sat there, staring at him with their blank eyes, the eyes that had haunted Neville's dreams weeks afterwood. He sat their dully as Professor Moody dedemonstrated one of the Unforgivvable Curses on a spider, making it tap dance across his his desk. The whole class was shouting and laughing.  
"Think it's funny do you?" Moody suddenly growled. "You'd like it, would you, if I did it to you."  
The laughtor in the class room stopped instantly.  
Moody picked up the spider, threw it back into it's jar and said: "Anyone else know one? Another illegal curse?"  
To everyone's surprise as much as his own, Neville felt his hand going up.  
"Yes?" said Moody, his magical eye fixing its penetrating gaze on him.  
"There's one-the Cruciatus curse," he said in a small voice. The Crutaitus Curse. The curse that had caused his parents to go insane.  
Moody was staring at Neville with both eyes now. Neville squirmed uncomfortablly.  
"Name's Longbottom?" he said finally.  
Neville nodded and Moody said nothing more. But at that moment, Neville knew. Moody already knew his parents were insane.  
Neville watched as Moody took as second spider out of its jar "The Crutiatus Curse," Moody said. "Needs to be a bit bigger for you to get the picture." Moody pointed his wand at the spider. "Engorgio." The spider began to swell. Moody pointed his wand again at the spider and said "Crucio!"  
Neville watched, horror struck as the spider began to writh and turn, twitching, rocking from side to side, rolling over and over. Many times after he had visited his parents, he had wondered what terrible power could have caused them to forget him, to go insane, but he had never imagined this.  
Suddenly, the room seemed to dissolve, everyone seemed to evaporate,and the spider had turned into his parents. He could see his parents writhing on the floor in agony, faces twisted in terror, the yells, their cries, their beggings for mercy... he could almost feel their pain growing inside him... and Moody's face had suddenly turned into the evil, pittiless person who had done this, his wand poised over the top of them, showing no mercy, only enjoying the sight of their terror and agony...  
"Stop it!" a voice had cried shrilly. "Stop it now!"  
It was Hermione. She was staring at Neville with concerned look on her face. Moody raised his wand and the spider stopped twisting and lay still.  
The rest of the lesson seemed to go by in a sort of haze for Neville. He had sat numbly at his desk, oblivious to the fact that Moody had performed the killing curse on the last spider, didn't care about the notes Moody had put up on the board for them to copy, all he could see and hear was parents lying on the floor, twisiting in pain, crying in agony...  
The bell went for the end of the lesson. Neville climbed out of his seat and followed the rest of the class in a sort of daze. He heard Dean and Seamus talking in excited whispers over the lesson-as if it had been some spectacualr show- but Neville didn't find it very entertaining at all, he suddenly stopped in the middle of the stairwell and stared at the wall in front of him, the only thing he could look at without suddenly seeing his parents again...  
"Neville?" said a voice behind him. Neville turned around. It was Hermione, and she had Harry and Ron with her. Neville noticed that Harry looked strangely withdrawn as well.  
"Oh hello," he said, trying to sound as if nothing was wrong. "Intersting lesson wasn't it? I wonder what's for dinner, I'm starving aren't you?"  
"Neville, are you alright?"  
"Oh, yes, I'm fine," Neville ranted. "Very interesting dinner-I mean lesson-what's for eating?"  
"Neville, what-?  
But Professor Moody had just come up beside them and was staring at him.  
"It's all right sonny," he said to Neville. It was a growl most unlike his own, it was gentle and it almost sounded as though he cared about Neville. "Why don't you just come into my office? Come on... we can have a cup of tea..."  
Neville stared at him, and suddenly saw Moody's features shift around to form the pitiless face that had taken his parents. Neville shook his head and everything came back to focus again.  
"Well...come on Longbottom, I've got some books that might intrest you." Moody put a hand on Neville's shoulder. Neville cast a pleading glance at Hermione, Ron and Harry, but they didn't do anything so he was forced to turn around and let himself be guided into Moody's office.  
"Well... in you go son," said Moody, holding the door open for Neville to let him inside.  
Moody's office was filled with strange gadgets, one Neville recognised as a Sneakoscope, and an odd trunk with seven locks.  
"Sit," Moody said it the same gentle growl. Neville did as he was told and watched as Moody bustled about making the tea.  
"Now, Neville," said Moody as he sat down opposite him. "Unless I'm much mistaken, you're parents are none other then Frank and Georgianna Longbottom."  
Neville nodded wordlessly, clutching his tea but not drinking it.  
"I knew your parents well," said Moody, taking a sip of his tea. "They were Aurors, like me. And a better witch or wizard I never knew. They were good and kind. And when you were born, I'd never seen a prouder couple. They called you Neville after your grandfather."  
Neville stayed silent. He didn't quite know what to say.  
"They were very powerful, your parents. It was a crying shame about what happened." Moody shook his head. "I know that if they could remember you, they would be proud of how you came about. You might not feel it, but I knew your parents like no one else did. I know showing you the curses may have been harsh, but you've got to know. I feel dark times drawing closer, and it's better to know now then find out the hard way."  
Moody paused.  
"Now, I know better than anyone else that when your feeling down, you have to throw yourself into something you enjoy to take your mind off things. What are you good at?"  
"Nothing," said Neville, speaking up for the first time.  
"Rubbish," Moody growled. "Everyone has to be good at something. Think boy, what is it you're best at?"  
Neville thought for a moment. He's talent definitly didn't lie in Potions, nor in Transfiguration, Charms, Divination or Astronomy. In fact, the only subject he felt that he was really good at was...  
"Well," said Neville. "I suppose there's always Herbology."  
Moody suddenly got up and limped towards his bookshelf. He pulled out a book and hobbled back to his desk.   
"Now, Professor Sprout's already told me that you're quite some Herbotanist. Thought you might be interested in this." He held out the book for Neville to take. Neville glanced at the cover Magical Mediteranian Water Plants and Their Properties.   
"Got just about everything you need to know about water plants in it. Could come in handy one of these days. Now just bury yourself into that book to take your mind off things for a while. It'll do you good."  
"Thank-you," said Neville, getting up. As he headed towards the door he heard Moody say:  
"Neville."  
"Yes?" Neville said, turning back.  
Moody stared at him with his magical eye before speaking. "Don't be ashamed of your parents. They put other peoples' lives before there own. It was through their own generousity that they lost their sanity. I know they would be proud of you if they could see you now. They were good people. They did what they thought was right. So never be ashamed Neville. Never."  
  
  
  
A/N: To everyone who's just finished reading this, I would reeeeeeeeally appreciate it if you all wrote a review. This is only my fourth fic and not that many people reviewed the others so i don't have much of an idea of what everyone thinks ^_^.  
  
Disclaimer: All charactors, Hogwarts, the Unforgivable Curses and the basic plot of the story belong to JK Rowling.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



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